New Music Weekly #32 | James Ferraro, N.E.R.D, They Might be Giants
New Music Weekly is your one stop shop for new releases in the world of music each and every week. From the best of the best, to some of the rest, Mark Conroy is here to give you the low down on what you might have missed. This week: James Ferraro, N.E.R.D, They Might be Giants and more…
James Ferraro ‘Bio-Sewer’
A trollish but no doubt talented figure, James Ferraro is one of the “It boys” of Vaporwave. Whatever your opinion on the polarising genre, there’s no doubt that it has been responsible of some of the most original compositions of the internet age. ‘Bio-Sewer’, which appears on Ferraro’s new EP Troll, is a surreal voyage into a sea of ambient atmospherics. The sugary sweet, choppy high pitch vocals sound like their sung by a possessed doll from a B-horror film and the stabbing, Stranger Things synths give the track a phantasmagorical vitality. It’s certainly weird, but it’s also kind of wonderful.
U.S Girls ‘Velvet 4 Sale’
After the excellent, fiery showstopper ‘Mad as Hell’, Meg Remy drops another single off of her upcoming U.S Girls album In A Poem Unlimited. The timely ‘Velvet 4 sale’ details a woman taking revenge against her violent abuser. The track slinks along with a venomous authority, it’s hushed backing vocals and film noir horns suggest something long repressed that needs uncovering. With a straightforward verse/chorus structure, there’s the skeleton of a pop song here, but the meat is alien. The warbled, ever wavering production never settles and there’s a guitar solo hailing from straight outta space that crash lands in during the bridge. Remy is nothing if not a restless esoteric who also understands the power of compromise.
Makeness ‘Day old Death’
A Scottish producer who recently signed with Secretly Canadian, Kyle Molleson records under the Makeness moniker. ‘Day old Death’ is Haunted House, a gothic symphony that starts out ominous and ends up euphoric. Molleson’s vocals offer a spectral presence amidst the wistful world of the soundscape that surrounds it.
Maria Kelly ‘Hollow’
Raised in Mayo, singer/songwriter Maria Kelly has been making waves since being named as one of ’50 People to Watch’ in The Irish Time earlier this year and since releasing her debut EP, The Things I Should. The delicate, echoed plucking and soft croon found in her music calla to mind the heady atmospherics of a group like Daughter. New track ‘Hollow’ is another showcase of ability to move listeners via her the subtle power of her serene songcraft.
N.E.R.D ‘1000’
The rap group drop their second single off of their upcoming comeback album No_One_Ever_Really_Dies. After the Rihanna featuring ‘Lemon’, it’s Future who makes his mark on the blistering stomp ‘1000’. Lyrically the song seems more intent with shoehorning in the title than concerning itself with complexity but ‘1000’ is a simplistic surge of ‘kinetic energy’ that’s hard not to get behind. Pharrell Williams’ boisterous production bounces along at breakneck speed as it manoeuvre with intent from bass heavy bombast of the first half to the stabbing synths of the latter. It’s one for the live showcase in the festival sun, but that’s reason enough to rear your head again after a spell in the shade.
They Might be Giants ‘Last Wave’
Iconic Nerd-rock troupe The Might be Giants return with their first new material in over a year. ‘Last Wave’ is seemingly cheery piece of melodic rock. It’s not going set the world alight, but it might be one of their strongest singles they’ve released in some time.
JB Dunckel ‘Hold on’
Jean-Benoît Duncke, one half as of the French duo Air, releases music under the moniker JC Dunckel from the time to time. New track ‘Hold on’ is serenely moving piece of piano-based electronic music. It’s ebbs and flows like a river that rages quietly and makes it mark when you least expect it.
